The World is Crumbling (And We're Still Here)
by midnightstaaarlight
Summary: This is it - the apocalypse.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** whether this is a zombie apocalypse au or a TWD au, I do not know! This story is planned out to be finished in 5 chapters, 6 at most. I didn't actually do the prompt, which is "are you flirting with me?" but maybe i'll do it in the latter chapters of this story. Who knows? It was from a cute/fluff prompts list but I can't write fluff so…

prompt request by the lovely Ro, raceshadowsinthemoonlight on tumblr 3

Reviews and constructive criticisms are always welcome! :)

* * *

At first it was just him - running around and killing the undead. It's such a fucking boon that he was a criminal before all this shit happened. At least he knew how to fight and how to be merciless.

It was just him for months and then came Isabel. He found her stuck to a tree, crying and throwing broken branches at the undead below. He killed them off easily and she hasn't left his side since.

Next came Farlan. They stumbled upon him when they were looting the same grocery store. He asked if he could join them; Isabel asked if he could drive. He said yes and the three were inseparable since.

They run out of gas in the middle of the freeway. It was nighttime and Isabel made a move to turn on the flashlight.

He laid a hand on hers to stop her, "Don't. Light attracts them."

She nods and puts it back in her bag, "What are we going to do now, big bro?"

"We'll walk," he says before exiting the car.

* * *

She's on wall duty tonight with Gunther and a few others. The wall isn't actually a wall, per se, but rather it's made of two cargo trucks, back to back with each other, the spaces below and between them were stacked with tires and galvanized iron sheets.

She's the sharpest shooter in the district and he's best with a crossbow. She has sharp senses as well and the slight movement in the bushes didn't go unnoticed by her eyes.

"Gunther, look there," she points to the bushes.

Gunther squints and hands her a rock slightly bigger than her closed fist. She pulls her arm back and throws.

They hear a startled scream and muffled voices.

"Who goes there?" Gunther shouts and the others get curious and start walking towards her and Gunther, but she stops them and tells them to go back to their stations.

"Don't worry. We can handle this," she smiles to reassure them. They're just kids - most of them only 15 - but they're too old for their age. This is what the apocalypse has done to them.

Petra turns her attention back beyond the wall and sees two boys and a wounded girl between them.

"Raise your hands!" She orders.

"You threw the fucking rock!" The small one snaps.

She cringes at the acid in his voice.

"She's fucking _injured_ because of you!"

The taller boy reprimanded the short one and he calms down enough to ask them for help.

Both she and Gunther went outside and ushered them in.

"Give her to me, I'll take her to our doctor," she tells the short guy with the intimidating grey eyes but he refuses to hand the girl over.

"I'll bring her there myself. Just lead the way."

* * *

Dr. Jaeger stitched the cut on Isabel's forehead; he tells them that the wound is only superficial and should heal in no time. The girl with the ginger hair is still there, standing by the doorway and biting her nails.

"Big bro?" Isabel croaks. She'd been fatigued and dehydrated and Dr. Jaeger hooked her up to an IV, supplying the necessary fluids her body needs.

"I'm here. Are you okay?"

She nods and asks for Farlan. He tells her that Farlan went to go see the Commander - whoever the hell he is.

The girl with the fiery hair rushes over, "Oh, thank God, you're okay! I'm so sorry. We thought you were one of them. Can you forgive me?" She looks at him and then at Isabel.

Isabel nods and gives the girl a weak smile and he watches as the girl takes hold of Isabel's hand and gives it a squeeze.

"I'm Petra," she smiles and he tells himself that it's fucking irrational for him to remain angry at her just because of an honest mistake. And he forgives her, too.

* * *

The guy named Gunther brings Farlan to a house and into an office. The man on the desk has blonde hair swept to one side and eyebrows as thick as his pinky finger.

The man gives him a quizzical look, "And who is this new friend of yours, Gunther?"

"Farlan Church, sir." Farlan answers.

The man nods and turns to Gunther for an explanation. Gunther tells the man everything and it hits Farlan that this guy must be the Commander who's in charge of their district.

"Is that all?"

"Yessir"

"You can leave us now, Gunther. Go back to the wall,"

Gunther Schultz nods and turns on his heels, leaving Farlan Church in the hands of the Commander.

Farlan watches as the Commander stands, disappears through a door, and returns with a tray in hand. He pours a cup for him and tells him to sit down.

"Do you intend to join us?" the Commander asks once he settled back down behind his desk.

Farlan takes a sip of his tea and scratches the back of his head, "I think you should ask our Chief."

* * *

Farlan and a boy named Armin comes for him.

"The Commander says he wanted to speak to you, Chief,"

He raises an eyebrow at him. Farlan walks over to where he sits beside Isabel's bed and whispers, "He thought I was in-charge and asked me something. I said I wasn't in the position to decide and that he should talk to you. Try and be friendly."

He nods and vacates his seat; Farlan occupies it immediately and takes a bite out of the sandwich that Petra made for him.

"I'll take you to him, sir," Armin says and he follows the boy out on the street and into the Commander's home.

"You must be the Chief! Please, sit down," the Commander offered him a seat and a cup of tea.

He doesn't sit down nor does he take the cup of tea. He finds it annoying that people waste time with pleasantries so he asks him straight up, "What do you want from me?"

He can feel the aura in the room change. The friendly Commander is gone, replaced by a hard and unforgiving man.

The Commander takes a deep breath, "Do you intend to join us?"

_Do you intend to join us? _

The question plays over and over in his head. He thinks about what joining them would bring. If it were only him, he'd rather not join them, preferring to be constantly on the move and surviving on his own. But he isn't alone now – he has Isabel and Farlan to take care of and their safety and security is his topmost priority. A roof over their heads and warm food in their stomachs is more than he could ask for so he tells him _Yes. We would like to join you._

The Commander smiles, "We always welcome those who'd like to join us with open arms. But we _need_ something in return. What can you offer to help secure the safety of our humble community?"

His brow creases. _What does this fucker want? We're fucking starving and tired and_, "We have nothing. We only have our clothes on our back."

The Commander shakes his head, "No, we don't need material things. We need people who are willing to risk their _lives_ to protect this place. We need fighters."

_Fighters, huh? We've been fighting for our lives since this whole shit began. And it's been five fucking years. _

"Are you willing to fight and protect everyone within these walls, Chief?" The Commander props his elbows on his desk and rests his chin on his intertwined fingers, looking at him and waiting for his answer.

He balls his fists, takes a deep breath, he has thought his choices through and he has decided, "I am."


	2. Chapter 2

Isabel is released from the infirmary three days after their arrival and Dr. Jaeger made sure that their wounds and cuts were taken care of. The Commander tells them that the whole community is actually just a closed off section of a village and he himself escorts them to where their new home would be.

It's a two-story house with two bedrooms and a small backyard.

"It's a bit dusty. You can ask Petra next door for cleaning supplies or if you need help with the cleaning. She'd be more than willing to help you, I'm sure," The Commander says before dipping his head in goodbye and slipping out the door.

"I'll go ask Petra for cleaning supplies!" Isabel chirps and Levi instructs Farlan to accompany her and to return as soon as possible. The dust and dirt irks him and the sooner they get the place spotless, the better. He rummages through their meager belongings for something to cover his nose.

They return with brooms and buckets and a particular girl with hair the color of sunset and eyes the color of honey. She constantly visited them in the infirmary and chatted with Isabel. He thanks her for that; it would do well for Isabel to have another girl to talk to.

"Petra offered to help," Farlan says and rolls his sleeves.

With an extra pair of hands, they got the house cleaned in no time. Petra runs back to her home yelling _I'll be back with food!_ over her shoulder and, surely enough, she's back in an instant with a loaf of bread and a few apples.

Petra places an apple in his hands before he can even protest. He gives it back but she insists and in the end, it was Farlan who ate the apple. She tells them that there is hot water only in the mornings and that food rations are handed out on Mondays. She says that the Commander instructed her to give them a tour of the district tomorrow.

"Why?" the question came out a little too harsh than he'd intended and she gives him a disappointed look.

"For you guys to meet everyone, of course. The boys are excited to see the new girl in town." She smiles at Isabel and the younger girl blushes.

"How many are you here, anyway?" Farlan asks and takes a bite of another apple.

"A hundred, more or less, most of them kids," she says.

* * *

There's a knock on the door and Levi groans. He gave the rooms to Farlan and Isabel saying that he'd sleep just as well on the couch.

He considers slipping on his old and grimy shirt but thought better of it. He checks his watch. _It's 6 AM. Who the hell?_

He opens the door and standing in front of him is Petra, holding a bundle of clothes in her arms. He can feel her eyes roving all over his well-toned body.

"Had your eyeful?" He says the moment her bug eyes meets his.

She blushes a pretty shade of pink and looks down, "I, ah, here." She shoves the bundle to his face.

"I hope they fit. See you later," she mumbles and dashes off in the early morning light.

He doesn't try to go back to sleep and sorts out the clothes instead. He hands the ones for Farlan the moment the other boy walks out into the hallway and tells him to get ready. Petra might show up any minute now. He changes into the new clothes she gave, it's a tight fit but it's clean and he can manage.

She arrives with breakfast and he tries to refuse his share but she insists and Isabel makes a jape about him wanting to be spoon fed by Petra - she blushes ever so slightly and it doesn't go unnoticed by his eyes – but they laugh about it, except for him of course. He thinks that he's forgotten how to laugh. Hell, he can't even remember that last time he laughed.

Petra took them to meet Dr. Jaeger's family first. He has a son named Eren and an adopted daughter named Mikasa. They're younger than Isabel and so much younger than him and it irritates him that he is smaller than both of them.

She introduces them to Mike, the Commander's right hand man and who is in-charge of training the kids how to handle guns and how to fight.

"_You're turning kids into soldiers?_" he's angry; both Isabel and Farlan can tell but they don't say anything to calm him down.

"We don't like it but we have to," Mike answers, his voice woeful and filled with regret.

"Only a handful of us know how to fight and how to survive. And if we don't train them, the risk of getting overwhelmed and overrun by those things is higher. And what if we die while out scouting? Who will replace us and protect the little ones and the elderly - if not them? I hope you understand why we have to do this." Petra explains. She looks at him, her eyes sincere, and Levi understands.

* * *

"What's that?" Isabel stops and points at a rectangular piece of metal with sheets made out of crystals mounted on top of a house.

"Oh, those are solar panels. They supply electricity for the whole district. There are only five houses installed with those things and that's the only house with electricity 24/7. The other four provides for the whole district and only for 12 hours each day," Petra answers and motions for them to get going.

"What do you think is so important about that house?" Farlan asks him and Petra overhears. She says that it's their pitiful attempt at a research facility. But she smiles and tells them that despite the lack of equipment and a better facility, their research team delivers.

He vaguely wonders why she didn't take them to meet the research team.

* * *

They met most of the others when they helped the Commander hand out the food rations during lunch.

"We usually do this in the mornings but I figured that you guys would like to get a good rest," he hears the Commander tell Farlan. He tries to count the number of children and the elderly and sure enough, they number more than those who are physically capable of combat.

He's still packing the extra rations when Armin walks up to him. "Excuse me, Chief, but the Commander wants to talk to you," the boy tells him before running off and talking with the Jaeger kids.

He goes over to where the Commander and an old man is standing under the shade of a tree and waits until the Commander finishes talking to her before approaching him.

"What do you want?"

"I would like you guys to meet someone," the Commander says, absentmindedly scratching his arm.

_I've met enough people in one day to last for a lifetime_ but instead he asks him who and when.

The Commander gives a short laugh, "Ah, I can't quite describe them. But you'llmeet them soon enough. I'll come by your place after dinner, yes?"

Levi nods and returns to finish packing the extra rations only to find that Petra had finished it for him. He gives her a thank you and she gives him a smile so bright he swears that he's going to be blind.

Later, Petra invites them to dinner at her place. He refuses, reasoning out that they have their own rations and could cook for themselves. He watches as her face fell, nods, and excuses herself, saying that she has to go and talk to Gunther about something.

"Petra was just trying to be nice, Chief," Farlan tells him later in the quiet of their new house.

"And her cooking tastes better than yours!" Isabel huffs and flops down on the couch.

"Shut up, you whiny little shit."

* * *

The Commander takes them to the Research Facility.

The whole place is filled with harsh bright light and for a second Levi is certain that he is going blind. The place is almost devoid of furniture except for a couch, a table, and a coffee maker. The place smells like ground coffee and tea leaves.

"My eyes hurt," he hears Isabel complain to Farlan and he shushes them.

"Dr. Zoe?" the Commander calls out and they came out of the bathroom, a toothbrush stuck in their mouth. They have thick rimmed glasses pushed on top of their head and there are dark circles under their eyes.

"Heya, Commander! Is there a prob – _Who are_ _you_?" they say turning to Levi and the others.

The Commander introduces them to Dr. Zoe.

"Dr. Zoe here is the head of the research team."

"Please, call me Hanji." Hanji shook their hands and proceeded to lead them down the hallway. They came to a room less bare than the last. There's a fridge and various lab equipment and glassware; there are two computers on a single workstation and a person feeding an Arowana in an aquarium.

"Moblit, we have guests!"

Moblit greets them and excuses himself to make tea. The Commander sits on one of the two chairs in the room and Isabel wanders over to the aquarium. There's a beeping sound and Hanji bends over to type away on the computer and Farlan cranes his neck to take a peek at what's on the screen. He feels a bit uneasy and something in his gut tells him that something awful is going to happen.

The sound of Hanji's fingers on the keyboard stop abruptly and confusion flashes over Farlan's face.

The Commander sits up, "What is it?"

Hanji removes the toothbrush from their mouth and mutters to themselves "I have solved it. I can't believe it. I did it."

The Commander closes his eyes and sighs in relief – as if he'd been holding his breath for _years_.

They watch as Hanji straightens, walks over to where Moblit placed the tray, and gulps down a cup of hot tea. Hanji returns to where they are, sits down on a chair and screams at the top of their lungs, "_Moblit! I did it!_"

Moblit scampers to Hanji and a startled Isabel almost knocked down the aquarium. Moblit's eyes scan over whatever it is flashed on the computer screen and a sound escapes his lip that's a mix between a sob and a laugh. Hanji starts wailing in euphoria and Farlan wonders whether or not they're bonkers.

"What the _hell's_ going on?" Levi seethes, his dread being replaced with irritation. He hates feeling ignorant and, right now, he feels like the stupidest shit on earth.

"Ah, Chief, I'm sorry. But I'm afraid that Dr. Zoe is not in the right mindset to discuss to us about their new discovery," The Commander says and gives a knowing look at a slightly calmed down Hanji.

"Ah, yes, we'll tell you guys in the right time. I apologize." Moblit gives them an apologetic smile.

"If you'll excuse us, Dr. Zoe. Moblit."

And with that, the Commander escorts them out of the Research Facility and back into their home.

* * *

"They're crazy. Shit fucking crazy." Levi says as he sits down on the couch.

"Maybe that's why Petra didn't take us to meet them earlier." Isabel muses before saying goodnight and bounding up the stairs.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you for your support and Advanced Merry Christmas, dears! I hope you guys like this relatively short chapter. :)

Comments and constructive criticisms are always welcome!

*this is where I shove Rivetra down your throats.

* * *

It doesn't surprise Mike that the new guys can handle themselves. He can't imagine what they went through - running from this place to that; looting and killing. It's no wonder that they can fight so well. Surviving outside made them tougher, quicker, and more equipped to combat the undead. So he places them with the Scouts - those who go beyond the wall to gather supplies and to try and contact other survivors.

But even if they excel in close combat, they are shit with guns.

The Commander instructs her to personally train them how to shoot. So she takes them to the training grounds and sets up a shooting range a few meters away from the kids and Mike.

"Once your bullet runs out, you're fucking dead. I don't see the point of you teaching us how to shoot." He tells her when she hands him a desert eagle.

"Commander's orders. His word is law here. Obey or leave. Your choice," She shrugs and walks off to reload her own gun.

It amazes him that she turns into an entirely different person when she's on command; her eyes become unreadable and merciless and her lips are set on a straight line. So different from the bright eyes that catches his and lips that almost always has a smile on them.

Two weeks of gun training and they find themselves out of the walls on their first scouting trip. Eld drives and Petra's on shotgun. Their group was tasked to look for medical supplies.

They drove for hours before finding a clinic. Isabel and Eld remained outside to keep watch and to siphon the gas from the broken pick-up truck.

Levi kicks down the door and dust came flying upwards. Petra covers her nose and moves past Levi and into one of the rooms, her pistol raised. Farlan goes to the left side of the clinic, checking the rooms for the undead. Levi walks over to the counter and rummages through a stack of boxes on top of it.

More boxes are behind the counter and he squats down to check if there's anything useful in them when he hears two shots, then a third, and a crash from the direction of where Petra went.

He is on his feet in an instant, knife out and running towards the noise – Farlan right at his heels. Two of them lie permanently dead on the floor, just beyond the door. They move in further and find Petra on her back, lying on the floor and desperately pushing an undead away from her. Levi goes in for the kill and drives his knife deep into its skull.

He helps Petra up and Farlan kills two more that stumbled into the room.

"You run out of bullets, you die." He tells her and hands him his knife.

"Thanks," she pants, "but I didn't run out of bullets. That thing slammed into me and I lost hold on my gun."

She picks up her gun and shows him the magazine, "See?"

"Doesn't matter. You should always carry a knife with you."

She nods, tucks her gun in its holster and tightens her grip on the knife.

After clearing the place of the undead and taking everything they deemed useful, they set the place to the torch and left.

Petra waits for him to pass by her house that night, recalling the events of the day. This hasn't been the first time she came close to death, but this the first time that someone was there to save her, usually it was just her struggling for survival.

She jogs up to him the moment she sees him, "Thanks again for saving me. Here. I cleaned it." She smiles and hands him back his knife.

He shakes his head, "It's yours now," he presses the knife to her hands, gentle and careful, so as not to cut her.

"Are you sure? I mean, I know you prefer fighting with knives and daggers and it's kinda not right taking this away from you." She mutters and _ah, I'm blabbing again._

He stops walking and turns to face her, "You didn't take it. I _gave_ it to you."

She gives him a grateful smile and he bids her goodnight.

Weeks pass and they have proven themselves to be a worthy addition to their community.

Aside from scouting and watching the walls, Isabel helps in the infirmary and Farlan assists Hanji and Moblit in the lab. Levi has shown himself as the strongest in the whole district – saving Mike and his other comrades in more than one occasion – and the Commander has given him the task of training the kids with Mike.

And he actually likes it; training the brats and teaching them combat skills. At least now he has a clearer purpose in life. He no longer survives for the sake of surviving; now he survives for the sake of keeping everyone within these walls safe.

She tells him that she likes him one night and he tells her that she doesn't know what she wants.

"But I know what I want," she whispers but he has already left.

What he didn't tell her, though, is that she's the last person he thinks of before drifting off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

It's not that he's starting to like her but she's always there, like a damn satellite to his planet. He turns his head and she's there, smiling at him with her perfect teeth. He walks this way and the sunlight turns her hair to fire, a burst of color in his grey, grey world. He cuts himself while training and she's suddenly there; her hands flying all over the place, bandaging whatever it is he's cut.

But sometimes he catches himself staring at her. He wills himself to stop, because it's the fucking apocalypse and nothing good ever comes out from that.

"I saw you staring at Petra all afternoon, big bro." Isabel gives him a knowing smile.

"I wasn't staring."

She shrugs, "Whatever you say. But I believe what I see."

* * *

He likes the look and the feel of the district in the mornings; he likes it when it's quiet, it gives him time to think.

It's been months since they entered those walls. The last night's watch are still on duty and a familiar shade of ginger catches his eye.

"Good morning, Levi!" She waves from her position on the wall.

He smiles to himself. That's one more thing he likes about mornings.

* * *

"Levi!"

His head snaps to the direction of the voice and there's a sudden flash of light. He rubs his eyes and he hears Petra's laugh. He wants to tell her to stop goofing off and to focus on looking for supplies to bring back with them but _she looks so happy_. It's rare to see someone happy these days.

She walks over to him, a Polaroid camera in her hands, and shows him a photo of him scowling and one of her and Isabel, two redheads smiling like idiots.

"I'm putting these on my wall back home."

A number of the undead started appearing in places near their district and the Commander stationed more people to watch the walls. He offered to be on the night's watch. He still trains the kids in the mornings and now, he also mans the walls at night.

* * *

Petra worries about his health and tells him this when they are both on duty.

"Mind your own business," he snaps at her and automatically regrets it.

Her blood boils, "Why are you _always_ so hostile?"

She storms up to him; she's too close for his liking so he takes a step back. But to be honest, he's actually quite scared.

Never anger an angel and she'll bring you hell.

"Well, I'm _so sorry_ for caring!" She shoves past him and she's stronger than she looks.

_What the hell was that, Levi? You bloody idiot._

He wants to tell her that it being hostile is his reflex, that being an asshole is something he was born with, but all he can do is watch as she climbs down the wall.

* * *

"Petra just left. She said she doesn't want to see you." Isabel tells him the moment he steps in through the door.

He doesn't say anything. He tells himself that it's better this way. _Let her think that I'm nothing more than a killing machine. Let her hate me; I'm going to hurt her, anyway._

"You're an idiot, you know that? She likes you and you like her. Don't even lie to us, Levi. The least you could do is tell her you're sorry." Farlan says before donning his jacket and going out to replace Levi on wall duty.

Isabel goes over to sit beside him on the couch, "I know you're worried about hurting her or some other shit you always worry about. But think of it this way, big bro, the world's ending and it won't hurt you two to grant yourselves a little happiness."

He looks at her and wonders how on earth Isabel grew up to become this mature young woman beside him when he can still remember the snotty little kid stuck on the tree.

* * *

He finds her shooting in the grounds, her body silhouetted by the setting sun.

"I'm sorry," he says bluntly because there's no use in beating around the bush. She doesn't turn to him and continues on shooting. So he repeats himself, thinking that she didn't hear. "I'm an idiot and an asshole. I'm sorry, Petra."

He stays there, waiting for her to respond. She's ignoring him on purpose. He says sorry one last time and turns to leave.

* * *

He goes home, expecting to find the place empty. But what he didn't expect is the smell of bacon in the air and Petra Ral cooking breakfast in the kitchen.

"What are you doing here?"

The sight of her in an apron and cooking him breakfast made him forget all about the shit he's done and this stinking apocalypse.

He could get used to this.

"You said you're sorry and this is me saying I accept your apology." She tells him as she serves him bacon and eggs.

He gives her his thanks after and helped her clean the plates and it feels as if they're together and everything's right in the world for once.

* * *

"Have you told her yet?" Farlan asks him on one of the rare occasions that they're both on wall duty.

He shakes his head. He still has to gather enough courage and to find the right time to tell her.

"Well, when are you going to tell Petra?"

"Tell me what?"

_Speak of the devil and the devil shall appear._

He didn't know that she'd be on duty tonight. Farlan scurries to his feet, "Levi has something to tell you and I just heard Auruo call me. Talk to you guys later."

He gives Levi a wink and runs off towards Auruo.

_That little shit!_

"So, what are you going to tell me?" Petra sits down beside him, her legs dangling on the edge of the wall. He doesn't answer right away but instead watch as Gunther shoots an undead who's trying to claw its way through the tires.

She starts humming and bumping her shoulder to his. He smiles and finds it a bit endearing. The moon is full, framing her in its soft silver light. And he decides that _this_ is the perfect moment to tell her.

"I like you, too, Petra," he says and watches as her lips curve into the most beautiful smile he's ever seen.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Sorry it took so long! Comments, suggestions, and constructive criticisms are always welcome! :)

trigger warnings: gore and violence

* * *

Farlan fetches them from her place, saying that there's an urgent meeting called by the Commander and Dr. Zoe in the Research Facility. Everyone is there, with the exception of the trainee kids, the elders, and the little children.

"You all know that Moblit and I – and more recently, Farlan - have been studying what brought the apocalypse and what turned the first human into a zombie, right? Well, I have this theory that we all carry the mutant gene that turns us into zombies within ourselves, within our genetic makeup."

"The reason why we called you here is that we've finally figured it out. Turns out – my theory is true. Here. This is our genetic makeup and this is _their_ genetic makeup. This is where the mutation is."Hanji points to the colored bands flashed on the computer screen.

He feels a chill run down his spine and Petra shivers next to him. Everyone in the room looks disgusted and horrified.

"Actually, we've figured it out a year ago but we weren't sure, even despite the molecular confirmation. We didn't want to believe," Moblit says as he gave them an apologetic look as if to say _sorry we kept this information from you guys._

"We still haven't discovered what actually triggers the mutations though. We'd like to find out but we're afraid that it requires for a person to die for us to observe and follow how the mutation happens," Farlan explains further.

The Commander thanks the Research Team for their hard work and after several minutes of stunned silence, Moblit asks if anyone has a question.

"Is there a cure, Dr. Zoe?" Carla Jaeger asks and everyone turns to Dr. Zoe expectantly.

Hanji removes their glasses and takes a deep breath, "There is none, I'm afraid."

* * *

"Who knew that Farlan was _fucking smart?!_" Isabel jests to lighten the mood after the horrifying revelation in the research facility.

"I happen to be a biology major before this shit started."

He still feels uneasy; learning that Petra and his friends could turn into mindless zombies someday made him want to vomit. Petra feels his discomfort and cuddles closer to him, comforting him with her mere presence.

* * *

"You should kill me when I turn into a zombie," she tells him while abed one night.

"You wouldn't turn into a zombie. I won't allow it." He instinctively tightens his arm around her. He's been sleeping at her place more than he does at his. Her father doesn't mind and even asked him if he wanted to marry his daughter.

"Ah, I forgot that it's the apocalypse. But an old man can dream, right?" Her father told him once before he went off to chop firewood.

* * *

He finds her slumped over the toilet bowl one morning and his whole being freezes with dread. He rushes up to her and helps her up gently.

He takes her face in his hands and looks in her eyes, "Petra, are you – "

She shakes her head, "I'm not. It's just something I ate."

"Are you sure?"

She smiles, "I'm sure, Levi."

He pulls her closer to him and kisses the crown of her head. They wouldn't want their child to live in this horrible, horrible world.

* * *

It is winter and he finds himself out of the walls once more. This time they are looking for warmer clothes to wear. The days have been gloomy and grey and _cold_. The children and the elderly are shivering from the harsh weather, and if they don't get warm soon, they might die of the chill and turn the place into a frozen zombie district.

Mike shoulders the door open, snowflakes swirling and landing on the dark and dusty floor of the house. Nanaba climbs half-way up the stairs and they wait as she makes noise to lure out the undead. They come stumbling out from the rooms and into the hall, hissing and grumbling. There were a number of the undead but the five of them killed them off in no time.

Isabel rummages through the closets in one of the rooms and bags all the blankets she could find. Levi goes up the stairs and Farlan follows. He is so focused on bringing back warm clothing for everyone that he doesn't notice the torso of an undead, sprawled behind the door of the room he just entered. It dragged itself to where he is fidgeting with the locked closet door.

Levi feels hands on his ankle and his muscles being ripped from his body and his mind doesn't register what's happening. He doesn't think about how foolish he is for not checking, he doesn't think about death or about the pain but _Petra_.

_Petra crying over his scorched corpse._

_Petra cursing him for leaving her._

_Petra _broken_ and lost._

_Petra alone in this horrible world._

_Petra. Petra. Petra._

He snaps and curses and sinks his dagger deep into its skull. He kicks the corpse away and stomps on its head over and over and over. He panics, _oh God_, he doesn't want to die. He needs to live for her.

Farlan hears him cursing from the adjacent room and finds Levi fuming and kicking the zombie at his feet.

"Levi, it's dead. What are you –"

Farlan's eyes grow wide as he takes in the sight of Levi's bloody calf. He rushes over, pulls an angry Levi away from the rotting corpse and forces him to sit down on the bed. Farlan rips off a piece of the bed sheet and makes a makeshift tourniquet just below Levi's knee.

"_Goddamnit, Levi! What the fuck were you doing?!_" Farlan curses as he tightens the tourniquet, stopping the flow of blood and the spread of the infection.

Levi doesn't answer and Farlan shouts for Isabel. She comes running up the stairs, takes one look at Levi's bloody leg and Farlan's pale face and a shiver ran down her spine.

"_Saw! Now!_" Farlan orders; Isabel nods and runs back down the stairs to look for a saw. Isabel arrives with minutes that seemed as though they lasted for hours with Mike and Nanaba in tow.

"This is the only thing I found," Isabel says as she hands the axe to Farlan.

"This'll do. Mike, hold him down."

Levi bit down on his fist and screamed just as the axe came crashing down.

* * *

"You're a _fucking_ idiot. I can't believe you!"Farlan tells Levi as he helps the latter get into the car.

"I'm glad you're alright, big bro," Isabel says beside him, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"How did he _not_ pass out from the pain?" Nanaba cringes as the image of Farlan hacking off Levi's leg came into her mind unbidden.

"He's a tough little guy," Mike says as he rolls off the curb and drives towards the district.

Levi closes his eyes. It's been a long and tiring day and Petra is waiting for him to come home.


End file.
